War On Hospital Ships: 1914-1918

War On Hospital Ships: 1914-1918 by Stephen McGreal


ISBN
9781526796455
Published
Binding
Paperback
Pages
272
Dimensions
156 x 234mm

It is often said 'The first casualty of war is the truth' and there is no better example of this than the furore caused by the claims and counter-claims of the British and German Governments at the height of the First World War. Wounded allied personnel were invariably repatriated by hospital ships, which ran the gauntlet of mined waters and gambled on the humanity of the U- Boat commanders. For, contrary to the terms of the Geneva Convention, on occasions Germany had sunk the unarmed hospital ships under the pretence they carried reinforcement troops and ammunition. The press seized on these examples of 'Hun Barbarity', especially the drowning of non-combatant female nurses. The crisis heightened following the German Government's 1 February 1917 introduction of unrestricted naval warfare. The white painted allied hospital ships emblazoned with huge red crosses now became in German eyes legitimate targets for the U-Boats. As the war on the almost 100 strong fleet of hospital ships intensified the British threatened reprisals against Germany, in particular an Anglo-French bombing raid upon a German town. Undeterred the Germans stepped up their campaign sinking two hospital ships in swift succession. Seven hospital ships struck mines and a further eight were torpedoed. Faced with such a massacre of the innocents Britain decided her hospital ships, painted and brightly lit in accordance with the Geneva Convention, could no longer rely on this immunity. The vessels were repainted in drab colours, defensively armed and sailed as ambulance transports among protected convoys. Germany had successfully banished hospital ships from the high seas.
Christmas Catalogue 2024 x BookFrenzy
33.99
RRP: $39.99
15% off RRP


This product is unable to be ordered online. Please check in-store availability.
Instore Price: $39.99
Enter your Postcode or Suburb to view availability and delivery times.

You might also like

WWI Illustrated Atlas
45.00
24.99
44% Off
Victory At VillersBretonneux
34.99
29.74
15% Off
Monashs Masterpiece
Peter FitzSimons
36.99
31.44
15% Off
Gallipoli
Peter FitzSimons
24.99
21.24
15% Off
Fromelles And Pozieres In The Trenches Of Hell
24.99
21.24
15% Off
Bill The Bastard
29.99
16.00
47% Off
The Chipilly Six
34.99
29.74
15% Off
Krithia
34.99
29.74
15% Off
Anzacs On The Western Front
49.95
16.99
66% Off
Monash
36.99
31.44
15% Off
Bill And Horrie
34.99
29.74
15% Off
The Lost Boys
35.00
29.75
15% Off
The Guns of August
22.99
19.54
15% Off
Monash And Chauvel
26.99
22.94
15% Off

RRP refers to the Recommended Retail Price as set out by the original publisher at time of release.
The RRP set by overseas publishers may vary to those set by local publishers due to exchange rates and shipping costs.
Due to our competitive pricing, we may have not sold all products at their original RRP.